GREY BOROUGH COUNCIL

Grey River Argus, 21 May 1943, Page 7

GREY BOROUGH COUNCIL

MONTHLY MEETING. The monthly meeting of the Greymouth Borough Council was held last evening. The Mayor (Mr. F. A. Kitchingham) presided. Also present were Crs. H. Herring, J. Saunders, G. M. Truman, J. Stokes, G. R. Harker, J. B. Kent, and P. Blanchfield, also the Town Clerk (Mr. F H Denton) and the Borough engineer (Mr. A. J. Fairmaid). It was decided to forward donations of £2 12s 6d to the St. John Ambulance Brigade and the Red Cross Society.

The Locomotive Foreman, Railways Department, wrote asking for a reduction in the charge for water consumption as a leak had developed in the water pipe. The matter was left to the engineer (Mr. Fairmaid) to adjust. Advice was received that the Public Trustee had accepted the position of Depreciation Fund Commissioner for the Abbatoir Depreciation Fund. The secretary, Blaketown-Preston Road Ratepayers’ Association wrote asking if the Council would be prepared to receive a list of necessary works in the district which could be undertaken in conjunction with rehabilitation plans. The action of the Town Clerk in intimating to the Association that such proposals would be received was approved. The Association also wrote stating that it was generally recognised that with the acquisition of the Blackball, Dobson, and Wallsend mines by the State the Grey County and Brunner Borough Councils would be deprived of a considerable source of revenue, and saying that it was a cause for concern to the Association and Greymouth ratepayers generally that a large proportion of this revenue constituted the hospital rate. It followed that the ' deficiency would have to be made up bv the ratepayers throughout the rating areas concerned and Greymouth ratepavers would have to find the greater amount of the total. The Association therefore urged that the ratepayers’ position should be placed before the Government with a view to securing some relief in respect of the properties acquired by the Crown and recommended that the Council take action accordingly. Cr. Harker said that he, too, was concerned about the matter. It was going to b e a serious thing for the ratepayers of Greymouth. He thought the Association should be thanked for bringing the matter up. Cr. Saunders said that the Association should be commended for its foresight. Cr. Blanchfield remarked that it was another strong argument for the nationlisation of hospitals. It was decided to make representations to the • Government on the matter. Mr. E. W. Rathbun, Perotti Street, wrote asking permission to use the shoo at the corner of Thompson and Shakespeare Streets recently occupied bv Messrs Smithers and Hopkinson as a workshop.

It was decided to grant permission. The Council decided to approve the settlement reached with the Harbour Board regarding the Erua Moana bridge and agreed that arrangements should be made between the Council an Board engineers for the work to be gone on with. Mr. A. W. Todd, Cobden, wrote asking the Council’s approval of h:s application for a license to operate a taxi within the Borough The matter was held over to be dealt with as soon as possible after a decision had been given by the Transport Licensing Authority. The Acting-Chairman of the reserves Committee (Or. Harker) reported that the. Committee had paid a visit to the Recreation Ground where it had met representatives of the Makura Croquet Club and the Karoro Bowling Club. The former club asked for a strip of land 36 leet in width along their south-western boundary, and the latter asked for an area of “land 180 feet deep witn a frontage of 200 feet to Shakespeare Street and bounded on the north-east-ern side by the United Tennis Club. The Committee recommended that the request of the Makura Croquet Club be acceded to and that oi the Karoro Bowling Club be not acceded to, • in view of the fact that the land required for. a bowling green would encroach too far on to the public plaving area. It was further recommended that an athletic or sports club, before using the Recreation Ground for any purnose. take out an insurance policy indemnifying the Borough Council against any claim which might arise as a result of the activities of the Club in tne use of the ground. . Cr. Kent pointed out that this last recommendation might restrain small clubs in their use of the area. The Mavor said that sooner ' or later a nastv accident would occur. Cr. Saunders said that the Committee’s action should be commended. Too many accidents occurred where people had not taken out a cover. Cr. Harker explained that the position was to protect the Council in case a person in the street were hurt by the action of players whom the Council had given permission to PJ Tiie report was adopted, the Mayor, in reply to Cr. Kent, saying that persons using other grounds were exempt. , The Karoro Bowling Club wrote asking the Council to make available an area of ground approximately LSC feet by 200 feet, which would provide two greens and the necessary buildings. The club said that it was using part of the Grey Hospital Board’s property but that the Board was unable to make any more ground available to the club. Indications were that within the next two or three years the Board might require the site of the present grpen for Hospital buildings. After considerable discussion tiie matter was referred to the Reserves, Committee for further consideration Mrs. A. Martin, Bright Street, Cobden, wrote asking if the Counci, would pay half the cost of placing a retaining wall beside her house in Newcastle Street, Cobden. She said that the wall was necessary, to safeguard the house a's the soil was.sandy and children had burrowed large holes almost to the piles. The Works Committee recommendi ed that the Council construct a wall across the end of the footpath at Newcastle Street, that an intermediate rail be fixed to the fence above the site of the wall, and that steps be taken to control storm water discharge from Bright Street water table. The recommendation was adopted, j Miss D. Oliver, Cobden, wrote ask-, ing permission to erect a garage on the left hand side of her property near the hill. The- Works Committee recommended that the site indicated to Miss Oliver by the Borough Engineer be approved, namely that on the north western side of the residence-, the front of the garage not to be forward of the line of the front of the house. The recommendation wa's' adopted. The Works Committee reported that Easson’s Hill, Alexander Street, the scene of a recent fatal motor accident was visited and it was decided to continue the improvement work commenced some months ago. The application by Mr. J. O'Donnell for certain improvements in the vicinity of his residence on Easson’s Hill was ! also considered and it was recommended‘that no action be taken. Regarding the letter from the Blake-

town Ratepayers’ Association concern.ng improvements required in Reid Street, and the increase in power) of the street light at the intersection. of Reid and Rigg Streets it recom-' mended that drainage be attended to in Reid Street between Robinson and Ryan Streets, but that at present no action be taken regarding the street' light. : ’' i Mr. Kent said that he thought something might be done regarding the street light and suggested that ■ the matter might be held over till the Engineer could find out if the transformers would take another higher powered lamp. The report wa's finally adopted, councillors pointing out that tnis matter could be raised again. The Inspector of Nuisances (Mr H. Lane) reported that he had inspected the area in Blaketown about which a complaint had been received. There wa's definite ground for complaint. There was a good deal of sheen manure on the around which he had requested should be dug in. This had been done in some cases but not in others. it was decided that action should be taken if the matter was not attended to. The statement of estimated expenditure and amounts expended mr the vear ended Marcii 31 last was as follows: Estimated expenditure c 7l.162 Ils Sd; expended. £6B 051) 8c id Amounts unexpended totalled, £4.697 19s Hd. and amounts overexpended. £1.586 6s 4d. Cr Saunders tendered his resignation as Chairman and a member of the Outstand'ng Revenue 1 Committee. Cr. Blanchfield said that it was- not the duty of any two or three councillors to chase bad debts.. 'The officers of the council had too much of their lime taken up with long-winded meetings of the council. He moved that the Outstanding Revenue Committee be abolished and that the Town Clerk be given the work of collecting outstanding rates. , Cr. Harker said that it should be the Committee’s job merely to.supervise the work, but it should not navp to do the work itself. Cr. Kent said that it was not . *e function of any councillors to take up the work of debt collectors. Cr. Saunders said that the crux of the matter was that the Committee had the authoritity of the council to do the work, but objection had been raised to the payment of £ll 10s for outside clerical work for the C/'-’-m'ttee which might have cost much more to do. £15,000. of outstanding , revenue had come in in the last four -ears which would not have come in but for the energies of the Committee. Cr. Kent said that he wanted the work to be done where it should bfc done. It was not right that the peonies’ business should be done outside the office. , , ~ Cr. Truman said that the council staff had its own work to do. He did not know how the Committee would operate without Cr. Saunders. The Mayor said that if there were no committee it was' going to oe a serious weakness. Cr Herring said that the use of a personal letter to ratepayers was much more effective than a steretyped letter would be. Cr. Harker moved an amendment that the Committee be asked to carry on in a supervisory: capacity. -J! '‘Appreciated the work it had done, he said. Cr. Blanchfield said he would not be happy to carry on with the worx, pushing people for irates when he disagreed with many of the ways in which their money; was spent. Cr. Stokes also expressed this view. After Cr. Harker’s' amendment had been put to the council and lost, the Mayor put his further amendment that the Town Clerk should assign the work of collecting outstanding accounts to a member of the council staff. This was carried.